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docseth1
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Joined: 2008/5/17
Posts: 173
Valdosta, Ga

 The Pathway Into His Presence

Ps 24:3-5
Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. 5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.


Introduction

Where is God, and where can I find Him? If any one ought to be able to answer this question, it should be the people of God.

But there are times even in the life of the Christian, in which our faith is diminished; and we too began to ask the question – where is the Lord.

Elisha – was such a man. After having spent several years working with Elijah, and seeing the miracles that God granted in his ministry, it produced a tremendous desire in his own heart to be used of God in such a manner. When God took Elijah up to heaven in chariots of fire, Elijah’s mantle fell to the earth and Elisha picked it up. And as he went to cross back over the Jordan River to go back home, he smote the waters with his new mantle and cried, “Where is the LORD God of Elijah?” (2Ki 2:14) He had seen God work for Elijah; now Elisha wanted to see God also work for him.

Gideon – was also such a man. In Judges 6: 12 “the angel of the LORD appeared unto [Gideon], and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. 13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”

Both of these men pointed to a time in history in which it seemed that Gods presence was more at work; and they wanted to know “Where is God now; and how can we get into His presence.”

This is a legitimate question; and it is a question that is answerable. I believe that our text in Psalms 24 will give us some answers.



One’s Passion For God’s Presence:

The first aspect of this text that I want us to consider is one’s passion for God. And this first aspect can be seen in the first word of our text – the word who? Who shall ascend?

This word not only suggests to us that there are some who will ascend, but it also suggests that there are those who will have a desire to ascend. But this desire being spoken about in this text is not passive, but it is intense. This is what passion is: a strong intense desire for someone or something.

So in essence, the first real question that is being asked to each of us is this: is there anyone here among us who has a passion to be in the presence of God. One would think that everybody would want to be in the presence of God; however, there are many who have no such desire. Many such like people come to our church services every week.

I do believe that it is the heart cry of every true believer; that they might live and dwell in the presence of the Almighty. I believe that the heart of every true child of God screams within them the sentiments of Moses when he cried to the Lord, “If thy presence [does not] go [] with me, carry us not up hence.” I believe that the heart of every true child of God cries with Isaiah, “Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence, (Isa 64:1)

Too many churches today, too many pastors, and too many members have become comfortable with services where there are no visible manifestations of God’s presence. The modern church is now able to offer the world everything but God.

It has been said about a certain church not to far from mine, that “if they don’t have it, you don’t need it.” This is the testimony of the modern church; and this was the testimony of the Laodicean church: Jesus said to the Laodicean church “You say that you are rich and increased with goods; and have need of nothing.”

We can now offer them many different sorts of programs; we can now offer them the best in modern praise and worship; we can now offer the church, men who are educated, and well able to put moving messages together, and men who are gifted speakers; but there is something strangely lacking in many of our modern churches, and that is a profound awareness of the presence of God.

I ask of you again, is there any one here who has a passion to be in the presence of God?

A passion for God will always precede the presence of God. Before we can have His presence, we must first have a passion for it.

One’s Pursuit of God’s Presence:

The second aspect of this text that I want to consider is one’s pursuit of God. Notice the text before us: It asks “who shall ascend?” To ascend into the hill means to climb up to God – to go to where He is. So, this ascension being referred to in the text tells us that if we are going to get into the presence of God, we must go after God; we must pursue God.

Throughout both the Old and New Testament, if there is one truth that really stands out it is this: if men will find God, if men will hear from God, and if men will get into the presence of God, they must be pursue God.

Example:
Jacob wrestling with the angel of the Lord for a blessing:
Moses turning aside to see the burning bush:
Following the fire by night & the cloud by day: (Both represented God’s presence.)
The children of Israel following the ark of God:

It can be heard thundering from the mouth of God to the prophet Jeremiah when He said:
"Call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not." (Jer 33:3) "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jer 29:13)

Over and over again we are told to seek the Lord. 1Ch 16:11 "Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually."

Ho 10:12 "Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you."

Isa 55:6 "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:"

2Chr 7:14 "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

Brothers and sisters, if we are going to get into God’s presence, we must passionately pursue His presence.

One’s Position in God’s Presence:

The third aspect of this text that I want us to consider is one’s position in God’s presence.
When we consider this aspect of the text, we are really asking the question, “How close do we really want to get God. This question can be seen when we consider the wording of this text. 3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?


Unto The Hill Or Into The Hill – Ex 19 & 24
Notice that it says, “Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord?” How many times have we quoted this text to say, “Who shall ascend 'unto' the hill of the Lord?” It is amazing how one letter in the alphabet can change the entire meaning of the text.

The text says “into the hill,” and “in His holy place.” However, the reading unto the hill is a real possibility. All you have to do is read Ex 19 to discover just how possible this is.

Mt. Sinai:
God's people could go up to the hill, but they could not touch the hill; neither could they ascend into the hill. They saw the lightning, the smoke, and felt the mountain tremble, but they did not see or come near to God.

Into The Hill – Ps 24:3
Moses went into the hill of the Lord.
He was able to come near the Lord.
God talked with him personally and privately.
When he came down, his face shown from the glory of God.

In His Holy Place – Ps 24:3

Again, the question has to do with our position in God. How close do you really want to get to God? There are professing Christians, who enjoy feeling the presence of God, they enjoy seeing the power of God displayed; but they have no real desire to pursue God, therefore, they just maintain a sort of status quo in their experience with God.

You see, God through His word has given us a building block – if you will, that will get us into His presence. If a man will enter into the presence of God, he must have a passion for God. If a man will enter into the presence of God, he must passionately pursue after God. But; when a man begins to passionately pursue God, let him decide at once what his position in God will be. Into the hill! In His holy place! As close to Him as possible!

But remember this as well; as we begin to pursue God, we can go no higher than our passion for God. A man can go no higher than his pursuit of God. But the man or woman who passionately pursues God, and decides at once that there is no other place for them that in the presence of Jehovah, they will be the people who will have the presence of God.

One’s Purity In God’ Presence:

I said previously that a man or woman can go no higher than their passion for God. I also said that a man or woman can go no higher than their pursuit of God. I want to also say through the inspired word of God that a man or woman cannot go any higher than their purity before God. We see this truth most plainly when we look at the fourth verse.

3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

Hebrides Revival & Psalms 24:

Two forms of purity:

External purity
Ps 24:4 He that hath clean hands. 2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. Col 2:21 Touch not; taste not; handle not.

Internal purity
Ps 24:4 He that hath clean hands and a pure heart. Mt 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

One’s Purpose For God’s Presence:

What is our motive for God’s presence? One might ask, “Does it really matter. As long as we have His presence, what difference does it make what our motives are?”

Well, it does matter what our motives are. If our motives are not pure, and if our motives are not right, our lives will be void of God’s presence. Some people want God’s presence so that it will bring affirmation to their ministry or church.

There are times in which God will affirm His church; however, the affirmation of our-selves should never become our motive for seeking God’s presence.We should never seek God’s presence to bring attention to our self, but all the glory the honor belongs to Him that sits upon the throne.

Some people want God’s presence upon their lives or ministry to be able to perform signs and wonders. But our reason for wanting signs and wonders ought to be to show the world that God is real, and that He is alive and well.

Some love the attention that it brings them. Simon the Sorcerer was such a man. But 1Peter 5:5 reminds us that “God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble.”

In Isa 57:15, God mad this statement: “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite.”

Convicted by a Baptist minister:

About a year and a half ago, I was listening to a Baptist preacher preach a message on the Holiness of God; and he made this statement: He said there are a lot of people who like to talk about God, there are a lot of people who like to sing, preach, and teach about God, but there are very few people who want to run after God and pursue Him.

He went on to ask his audience when was the last time that they had spent time with God in prayer – not to ask for anything, and not to tell Him about all of their problems, but simply because they were so in love with Him that they had to get in His presence. I must admit, that message convicted my heart. I thought about all the times that I had prayed out of duty, ritual, or want; but, I had to confess how little I had come to Him out of an insatiable passion and love.

Conclusion

How about you?

I do not want to leave you feeling overwhelmed as if the task of entering into God’s presence is too great. I just simply want to know “Are you passionate for God’s presence? Are you willing to pursue Him? How close to Him do you want to get? Do you desire pure hands and a clean heart?

Let us pray.


_________________
Cliff

 2009/12/16 16:57Profile





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